Link Centre Dictionary

yarn

UK/jɑːn/ US/jɑɹn/ uncommon

noun

1.

the act of giving an account describing incidents or a course of events

  • “his narration was hesitant”
2.

a fine cord of twisted fibers (of cotton or silk or wool or nylon etc.) used in sewing and weaving

Synonyms

verb

1.

tell or spin a yarn

Origin

From Middle English yern, yarn, from the Old English ġearn (“yarn, spun wool”), from Proto-West Germanic *garn, from Proto-Germanic *garną (“yarn”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰorn-, *ǵʰerH- (“tharm, guts, intestines”). Cognates Akin to West Frisian jern, Dutch garen (“yarn”), German Garn (“yarn”), Danish garn, Swedish garn (“yarn, thread”), Icelandic garn (“yarn”), Latin hernia (“rupture”), Ancient Greek χορδή (khordḗ, “string”), Sanskrit हिर (hira, “band”). Compare also the obsolete doublet garn.

Phrases

  • bay yarn
  • eyelash yarn
  • galley yarn
  • rogue's yarn
  • rope yarn
  • Saxony yarn
  • sock yarn
  • spin a yarn

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.